Folding couch or davenport



Oct. 29, 1935. A. MEILVES FOLDING COUCH OR DAVENPORT Filed April 2'7, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 29, 1935. A 1 v s 2,019,266

FOLDING coucn 0R DAVENPORT Filed April 27, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 I N VENTOR, HooLPH NEIL V56 i .1 TTORNEYS Oct. 29, 1935. A. MEILVES FOLDING coucn OR DAVENPORT Filed April 27, 1934 3 Sheets$heet 3 .Z'NVENTOR, ADOLPH MEILVLS [III HTTORNEYS Patented Oct. 29, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FOLDING COUCH R DAVENPORT Application April 27, 1934, Serial No. 122,679

2 Claims.

This invention relates to folding davenports and couches of the type in which the seat section and back section are locked in rigid relationship when the device is being used as a couch, and during the operation of converting the couch into a bed, both of said sections shift bodily into a position in which the back section is disposed horizontally and the seat section is disposed vertically or substantially so, after which the locking means for said sections is released or rendered inoperative so as to permit the seat section to be swung downwardly into the horizontal plane in which the back section lies.

The main object of my invention is to provide a folding couch or davenport of the general type mentioned, in which the locking means employed to hold the seat section and back section in rigid relationship when the device is closed or adjusted so as to form a couch, is easy to operate, is positive in its action, and is inexpensive to construct.

Another object is to provide a hinge for folding couches and davenports, that is equipped with a toggle or jointed device which is adapted to be only locks the two leaves of the hinge in angular relationship, but also takes up strains exerted on one of the leaves in a direction tending to cause the hinge to fold.

And still another object is to provide a hinge structure for upholstered folding couches or davenports, that is equipped with a means of simple design for preventing the hinge from marring or cutting through the upholstering material.

Figure l of the drawings is a vertical transverse sectional view of a folding couch or davenport constructed in accordance with my invention, showing the device closed or adjusted soas to serve as a couch.

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional View, taken on the line 2--2 of Figure 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

Figures 3 and 4 are vertical transverse sec- -tional views, illustrating the movement of the seat section and back section duringthe operation of converting the device from a couch into a bed, or vice versa.

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional view, showing the device open or adjusted so as to serve as a bed; and

Figure 6 is a perspective view of one of the toggle links.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the preferred form of my invention, A and B desmoved into a position to act-as a strut which not ignate the seat section and back section, respectively, of a folding couch or davenportlif the general type previously mentioned, said sections comprising rectangular-shaped frames I and 2, respectively, each of which has attached to same 5 a coiled spring structure over which upholstering material is stretched, as hereinafter described, and fastened to tacking strips :1: on the frames I and 2. The sections A and B are joined together by hinges, designated as an entirety by'the ref- 10 erence character C, so as to form a unit that can I be shifted bodily in the operation of opening and closing the device. The stationary supporting frame D of the device may be of any preferred construction, and said frame has pivotally 15 mounted thereon two pairs of rock arms or levers E and E that are attached to the seat section and back section in'such a way that said rock arms will swing forwardly from' the position shown in Figure 1 into the position shown in 20 Figure 5, during the operation of opening the device, and will'swing. in the reverse direction during the operation of closing the device.

When the device is closed'or' adjustedso as to serve as a couch, as shown inFigure 1, the sec-.35 tions A and B are held in rigid relationship with the seat section disposed horizontally and the back section disposed vertically, by a locking means or mechanism that is of novel construction, and which is positively controlled by an 30 operating means which the user. manipulates to release the locking means or render it inoperative and also manipulates to render said locking means operative. Preferably, the locking means above referred to consists of toggles cr jointed 35 devices which are so constructed and combined with the hinges C that they will serve as struts for the hinges which take up strains exerted on the back section when the device is open.

In the preferred form of my invention herein 40 illustrated the hinges C are'arranged at the ends I of the spring supporting frames of the sections A and B, and each of said hinges is composed of a leaf attached to the seat section, a leaf 2 attached to the back section, and overlapping lugs or cars 3 on said leaves through which a' horizontally-disposed hinge pin or pintle 4 passes. The togglesor jointed devices, previously mentioned, that are combined with thehinges '0 each comprises a link 5 pivotally connected at 5 to 50 the hinge leaf I, a linkG pivotally connected at 6 to the hinge leaf 2, a horizontal pivot I that joins the inner ends of the toggle links 5 and 6 together and holds said links against relative longitudinal movement, and co-acting lugs 8 at 55 the inner ends of said toggle links that butt against each other and form stops which hold the toggle rigid with the center pin 1 of same located slightly beyond dead center when the device is in its open position. The operating means for said toggles consists of rigid bars or members 9 whose rear ends are pivotally connected at 9* to the toggle links 5 and whose front ends are attached to any suitable kind of an operating member. In the device herein illustrated the seat section A is provided with folding legs'F that are pivotally connected at 9 to the operating members 9 in such a way that when the legs F are unfolded or moved into a position so as to serve as a support for the front edge of the seat section, the members 9 will exert a pull on the toggle links 5 in a direction to break" the toggles or cause the pins I of same to shift in the opposite direction past dead center thus renderingthe locking means for the sections A andB inoperative and permitting the seat section to be moved downwardly into horizontal alignment with the back section. In the operation of folding the legs F'the operating members 9 exert a positive thrust on the toggle links 5 and move said toggle links in a direction to cause the stops 8 on same to butt against the co-acting stops 8 on the toggle links 5, and thus render the toggles operative for holding the seat section and back section in rigid relationship. Usually, the legs F will be joined together by a transverselydisposed tie bar F which the user grasps in the operation of folding or unfolding the said legs.

I prefer to arrange the pivots 9 of the legs F in such relationship with the pivots 9 that join the operating members 9 to the legs, that when the legs are moved into their folded condition, shown in Figure 1, the pivots 9" will move upwardly past the center line of the pivots 9 and 9, similarly to the movement of the middle pin of a toggle past dead center, thereby causing the legs F to be securely held in their folded condition.

From the foregoing it will be understood that when the device is in its closed position, shown in Figure 1, the back section B is locked in rigid relationship with the seat section A andis held in an upright or substantially vertical position by the toggle links 5 and 6 combined with the hinges C which join the-bottom edge of the back section to the rear edge of the seat section. To open the device the user grasps the front edge of the seat section A and tilts said section up wardly and forwardly, which operation causes the sections A and B to move as a unit through the position shown in Figure 3 and into the position shown in Figure 4, wherein the back section B is disposed horizontally and the seat section A is disposed in an upright position. The legs F are then unfolded or extended by grasping the tie rod F and pulling it forwardly, with the result that the operating members 9 exert a pull on the toggle links 5 in a direction to break the toggles or move the center pivots I of same past dead center, as shown in Figure 4. The seat section A is now free to be swung downwardly into the horizontal plane in which the back section B lies, which operation causes the toggle links 5 and 6 to fold into the position shown in Figure 5. In the operation of closing the device, the seat section A is tilted upwardly from the position shown in Figure 5 into the position shown in Figure 4, the legs F are then folded, thus causing the operating members 9- to move the toggle links into a position to function as struts that lock the leaves of the hinges C in rigid relationship, and

Figure 3 and into the position shown in Figure 1. Due to the fact that a locking means and a tripping mechanism of the kind above described is positive in action, the device is superior to prior devices of the kind equipped with gravity operated latches for holding the seat section and back section in rigid relation, and such a locking means and actuating mechanism has the added 10 advantages of being inexpensive to construct and easy to install. Moreover, the toggle links or jointed devices 5 and 6, in addition to serving as a locking means for the seat section and back section, also operate as struts which effectively 15 take up strains exerted on the back section when the device is in its open position.

The coiled spring structures with which the seat section and back section are equipped preferably comprise coiled springs G whose upper ends are attached to marginal frames G, the upholstering material being stretched over the spring structures of both the seat section and back section and attached to said sections in such a way as to cover the hinges C that join said sections together. In order to prevent said hinges from marring or cutting through the upholstering material, particularly when said material is drawn taut and fastened to the tacking strips l during the operation of upholstering the sec tions A and B, the leaves I and 25 of each hinge C are provided with laterally-projecting ears or extensions l9 that act as stops against which the marginal frames G of the spring structures bear when the springs G are compressed during the upholstering operation. In other words, when the upholstering material is being stretched over the spring structures on the sections .A and B and secured in position, it is impossible for the upholstering material to be stretched so tight that the hinges C will cut through said material, due to the fact that the leaves of said hinges are provided with portions in that restrict the compression of the springs G by co-acting with or bearing against the marginal frames G of the spring structures. While the main function of the abutment pieces ill on the hinge leaves is to prevent the upholstering material from being stretched too tight during the upholstering operation, said abutments also act, when the deassumes after the upholstering material has been attached to the tacking strips.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A folding couch or davenport, comprising a 05 back section and a seat section, coiled spring structures on said sections provided with marginal frames over which upholstering material is adapted to be stretched, concealed hinges for joining said sections together and equipped with 70 vertically-disposed leaves provided at their upper ends with pivotally connected extensions that lie in the zone of the upholstering material, and

stops on said hinge leaves located in the zone 7 of said pivotally connected extensions and adaptthereafter, the seat section and back section are moved as a unit through the position shown in upon the seat section.

2. A folding couch or davenport provided with a seat section and a back section, hinges connected to said sections for joining them together, said sections being adapted to be arranged in the same horizontal plane when the device is open and at substantially right angles to each other nected to the respective leaves for each hinge for holding said sections in rigid relationship when the device is closed, ioldable supporting legs pivotally mounted on the seat section, and operating links pivotally connected to said supporting legs and to said toggles for securely holding said legs in their folded condition when said toggles are in an extended or rigid condition.

ADOLPH MEILVES.

when the device is closed, a toggle pivotally con- 

